


Thinking Alike

by pretentiouskneecap



Category: RWBY
Genre: Established Relationship, Fair Game Week (RWBY), Fair Game Week 2020, M/M, Post-Canon, date/domestic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-03-18
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:15:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23191492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pretentiouskneecap/pseuds/pretentiouskneecap
Summary: “I’m sorry sir, but the General doesn’t see anyone without an appointment.”He just needed to get past the damn secretary.Qrow raised an unimpressed eyebrow, “He’ll see me.”“I’m sorry, sir, but I really can’t let you in without the General’s approval,” the kid said, clearly intimidated but trying to remain firm. The fact that he was preventing Qrow from seeing Clover aside, Qrow respected that the kid was trying hard to protect his boss.“Yeah, fine,” he drawled, rolling his eyes, “the name is-”“-Qrow?”
Relationships: Lie Ren/Nora Valkyrie (mentioned), Qrow Branwen/Clover Ebi
Comments: 18
Kudos: 130





	Thinking Alike

**Author's Note:**

> For Fair Game Week 2: Date/Domestic (it's kind of both?)
> 
> Post-canon where after Salem's defeat Qrow became Headmaster of Beacon and Clover became General of Atlas. 
> 
> T-rating for some light swearing.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Qrow stood in the open foyer of the Generals’ office in Atlas, still somewhat unsteady on his legs after the long flight from Patch. He held a box in one hand, carefully supported from below. The magic that allowed for his transformations had thankfully kept it unmarked during his flight.

The other hand was tapping along his leg, already frustrated with the situation.

For the past six months or so, Clover had been increasingly flighty. He’d missed their calls, the ones they’d been having at the same time for _years_ , citing work concerns. Qrow hadn’t missed that he’d begun to look more tired through the camera recently either. At one point, nearly three straight weeks had gone bye with Clover barely managing to check in, and Qrow had decided enough was enough.

Qrow was worried about him and fed up with accepting the way their work had kept them from being together over the years. Even if Clover couldn’t take enough of a break to call him, Qrow had reasoned that _he_ was retired, and therefore nothing was stopping him from going to Atlas to see Clover in person.

So he had.

“I’m sorry sir, but the General doesn’t see anyone without an appointment.”

He just needed to get past the damn secretary.

Qrow raised an unimpressed eyebrow, “He’ll see me.”

“I’m sorry, sir, but I really can’t let you in without the General’s approval,” the kid said, clearly intimidated but trying to remain firm. The fact that he was preventing Qrow from seeing Clover aside, Qrow respected that the kid was trying hard to protect his boss.

“Yeah, fine,” he drawled, rolling his eyes, “the name is-”

“-Qrow?”

The familiar voice from behind him had Qrow spinning around, an automatic smile appearing on his face as his eyes snapped to meet wide green. He paused for a moment, taking in the sight of the man in front of him.

He looked well, outside the lines of stress currently carved into his face. Age had been good to the man, the silver at his temples and lines around his eyes somehow only accentuating his naturally handsome features. The brightness of his eyes hadn’t dulled at all, and the startling green of them was every bit as arresting as it had always been.

Not that Qrow hadn’t seen him somewhat recently in their calls, but seeing him in person was wholly different, no matter how good the resolution of communication technology had gotten over the years.

Clover was wearing his General’s uniform, as he had been most of the times that Qrow had seen him since he had taken up the position after Salem's defeat. It was a good look on him, similar to his old Ace Ops uniform except that the fabric was dark blue with accents of white, with slightly more ornamentation than he had back then as befitted his rank. The Council and military had advised the alterations of the uniform for the General when Clover had taken over, trying to distance themselves from James. The thought of that name sent a pang of sorrow through Qrow’s heart as it always did, although it was quieter now with all the years in between.

Regardless, the outfit suited him well. Qrow, however, still missed seeing Clover in the combat clothes he’d worn between escaping Atlas and the end of the war. That period was one of the only times he was able to see Clover in an outfit he had chosen for himself instead of a uniform, and the thought of it was nostalgic.

Giving the rest of Clover a quick once-over, Qrow tamped down on a smile as he saw his cross still pinned proudly in place over the man’s chest.

He’d had the cross from his old necklace fashioned into a pin and sent to Clover in a small box a few years back. His answer for the gift had come in a similar box a couple weeks later, the shamrock pin glinting in the light as he pulled off the lid, a new hole through the horseshoe at the top threaded through with twine to transform it into a necklace. The next time they’d had a video call, his cross had taken the place of the shamrock pin, which was instead lying proudly in its new place around Qrow’s neck.

Neither of them had brought it up since.

Qrow grinned in satisfaction as Clover stood frozen, speechless and gaping. With a few strides, he crossed the room back to where Clover was standing. He tugged at Clover’s arm before he slid his own arms around the other man’s waist, embracing him tightly and breathing him in.

Qrow felt strong arms come up to hold him back as Clover jolted out of his shock.

“You’re really here?” he asked, faintly.

“Yeah, Ace. I’m really here.”

Clover seemed to struggle to find words for a moment. “I know I wasn’t expecting you. I definitely would’ve remembered that.”

Qrow relaxed his hold, stepping back and shrugging lightly, “It’s more of a surprise visit.”

Clover stared at him a few moments longer. "Well, you came at a good time. I was just about to drop off these papers and head home for the night."

Walking forward, Clover opened the door and beckoned him into the inner office. He strode purposefully to the desk, sitting in the chair behind it as he sorted through a few of the drawers.

Qrow ignored the open chair on the opposite side, instead following Clover around to the back of the desk and perching himself on the edge.

“So, what’s with the new kid?” Qrow asked to break the silence, head tilted back toward the door. “I thought your old secretary was pretty good. She at least knew better than to try and stall me.”

Clover chuckled at him. “I’m going to have to apologize to him for you scaring him later, aren’t I?” He shook his head in amusement. “Yes, Iris was good. So good, in fact, that she started helping Marrow and I with fleshing out ideas and managing projects. We realized pretty quickly that she could do a lot more than just secretarial work, so I assigned her to Marrow to take over some of the projects on his plate officially.”

Qrow shifted on the desk, getting more comfortable. “Huh. Good for her then.”

Clover shut one of the drawers and gave him an even look.

“I have to ask, how is it that you managed to get all the way here without my finding out about it first?” he asked, leaning back in his chair. Qrow snorted.

“If you have to ask, it really _has_ been too long since I’ve seen you. You sure you don’t need to get your memory checked?” Clover raised an eyebrow at him.

“You know, as the former leader of the Huntsman Academy dedicated to defending Vale’s borders, I would think you’d know better than to cross over into another country illegally. As the leader in charge of defending the borders of said country, it’s probably my duty to tell you that just because you _can_ fly over international checkpoints doesn’t mean that you _should_ ,” Clover said, and his tone was chiding but the amusement in his eyes gave him away. Qrow smirked.

“You can take the bird out of the tribe,” he said, although by this point his life in the tribe felt so distant it almost seemed fake, like a memory he’d heard from someone else. He trailed off, punctuating the statement with a shrug. Clover just grinned at him.

“Oh? And to what reason do I owe the pleasure of this particular bird coming to visit unannounced?” And, well, Qrow had planned to break his news at the right time, but there was no harm in saying it now. He wasn’t exactly here to waste his time.

The other thing, however, he _would_ save for a more opportune moment. Maybe Clover’s semblance would take pity on him and he’d get lucky.

“Well, you know I’ve been retired for a bit of time already,” he began, seeing Clover’s nod of acknowledgement, “and things have finally settled down on Patch, so I figured if there was any good time for a visit it would be now.”

He ducked his head, watching his hand as it ruffled through a stack of papers on the desk. “I thought I might come to Atlas and stay for a while, if you’d have me.” And damn, wasn’t that a sentence he never thought he’d say back in the days before Salem’s defeat, before Clover, before everything.

Clover, for his part, huffed out a surprised laugh and muttered something under his breath that sounded like _great minds_ before placing his hand over Qrow’s, stilling the riffling of anxious fingers as Clover caught Qrow’s gaze.

“That sounds perfect, Qrow. Of course I’d love for you to stay as long as you can,” he said simply, “I was just about finished up here anyway and going to go home for some dinner, if you’d like to join me? I just restocked my groceries the other day fortunately, so I can cook you something nice. Especially considering that you flew all this way, it’s really the least I can do.”

Clover threw him a wink that managed to be just as attractive now as it had been when they’d first met, if not more so. It was equal parts charming and infuriating.

Qrow felt his shoulders drop a fraction as the tension in him eased. He hadn’t _actually_ thought Clover would reject him, but even after all these years it was still hard to get past his instincts. Not to mention the excess pressure he’d put on this night was making him more anxious around the other man than he’d been in years. 

He flipped his hand over, giving Clover’s a small squeeze as he let himself fall back into their familiar rhythm.

“I was planning on taking you out somewhere, but that sounds even better to be honest,” he admitted, pulling his hand away gently to gesture to the box he’d set down on the desk. “Tai and the girls made a cake and forced me to bring it for you under pain of death, so dessert is on me.”

He could practically see the gears turning in Clover’s head as he processed that statement with the way Qrow had traveled to Atlas, the question on the tip of his tongue before Clover just laughed slightly and shook his head, letting it go.

“You’ll have to remind me to thank Tai and the girls later then,” he said with a smile, and Qrow snorted.

“Isn’t that what you have that secretary for?” he said, sticking a thumb out behind him to the double doors that lead to the outer office.

“Sure, I’ll just have him pencil it in next to _meeting with the Headmaster of Shade_ and _discussion of the zoning ordinances of Western Mantle_ on the calendar, it’ll fit right in.” Clover’s tone was dry and Qrow laughed.

“Damn straight. Tai’s disappointment is much worse than a bunch of angry politicians; I can tell you that from personal experience.”

“Well, I suppose we can’t have that,” Clover said with a chuckle, rising to his feet and holding out a hand. “Shall we?”

Qrow hopped off the desk and took the proffered hand in his own, smiling as Clover used the opportunity to press a kiss to the back of it before they turned to walk out the door.

___

Qrow and Clover sat comfortably in Clover’s apartment, eating the delicious dinner that Clover had prepared for them and conversing between slurps of noodles.

Clover’s apartment was expansive and tastefully decorated, unsurprisingly, although he had elected not to take the traditional general’s quarters in recognition of the overhaul of the governing bodies of Atlas that had been happening at the time. He had chosen instead to take his old Ace’ Ops room, the suite empty on his return as the team had long since disbanded and been reassigned. The old generals' quarters had been turned into a museum commemorating the new bonds between Atlas and Mantle.

Over the years, Clover had used his own savings and skills to transform the suite into a large, open apartment. He had furnished the place in a way that felt comfortable yet was reminiscent of the minimalistic style of the military, adding in personalized touches that were apparent in most corners of the room. The windowsill perpendicular to the table and the mantle of the fireplace along the far wall were packed with pictures and cards from people all over Remnant, most of whom Qrow knew but a few he didn’t.

Featured centrally on the living room wall was a photo of Clover, Qrow, Tai, and the kids that they’d taken in Patch before the end of the war. On either side were framed pictures from various weddings and get-togethers over the years. In the kitchen hung a new piece of art Qrow hadn't seen before, a child’s drawing with “for Uncle Clover” written on it misspelled in crayon. The subject of it appeared to show a small figure fighting a large worm that was breathing fire. The hammer in the small figure’s hands and the two pink and green stick figures to the side of the drawing giving a thumbs up left Qrow with little suspicion of who had drawn it.

Qrow remembered when Clover had been working on decorating the place, a few years after the war. He had asked Qrow’s opinion on nearly everything, from the colors on the walls to the type of mattress on the bed, and Qrow had eventually demanded to know why Clover needed so much input and couldn’t decide for himself. When Clover had eventually told him it was because he wanted Qrow to feel comfortable enough that he could call the apartment his home in Atlas as well, Qrow had practically tackled him to the floor.

Qrow focused back in, realizing he had been smiling absently at the drawing, lost in thought. He turned his head to see Clover watching him with a warm, amused expression, and Qrow gave him an apologetic smile in return.

Qrow couldn’t remember what they had been talking about last, so he changed the subject. Time to get to why he had come in the first place.

“How are you, really?” he asked, setting his chopsticks across the bowl to give Clover the full weight of his attention. Clover dismissed the concern with a casual waive of his hand.

“Fine. Work has been more stressful recently, but I’m hopeful that we’re well past the bulk of it now. Everything seems to be winding down and running smoothly, at least for the moment.”

“Good, I was getting worried about you,” Qrow admitted. “You’ve been pretty preoccupied these past few months.”

“I know, and I’m sorry I’ve had to miss so many of our calls,” Clover said with an apologetic glance. “I’ve been- well, there’s been a lot happening at once. That should be changing fairly soon, as long as nothing else unexpected comes up.”

“I hope Atlas and Mantle know how _lucky_ they are to have such a devoted leader,” Qrow teased the other man, although he hoped Clover recognized the truth behind the sentiment. He wasn’t entirely satisfied with the answer he’d gotten, but he knew that Clover would explain himself further in his own time.

Clover smirked across from him, eyes sparkling, “Only if all of Remnant knows how lucky _they’ve_ been to have the great Qrow Branwen looking out for them all these years.”

Qrow forced himself not to blush. What was it about this man that made him feel like a goddamn teenager all over again? “Oh, please.”

“Remnant’s most ardent protector-”

“Stop.”

“-the most legendary huntsmen of our time-”

“ _Clover_.”

“-there are those who say he’s nothing more than a myth-”

Clover’s words cut off with a laugh as Qrow shoved at him from across the table, cheeks burning. He buried his head in his hands to hide his own twitching lips, letting out a groan.

He felt a tug on his hand as Clover wrapped his own around it, bringing his grinning face into Qrow’s view.

“Hey. Stop hiding,” Clover commanded. “All these years and you still haven’t learned how to take a compliment.”

“All these years and you’re still a dork,” Qrow retaliated, laughter taking the sting out of the words.

A comfortable silence fell, Clover playing with Qrow’s fingers.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” Clover said after a moment. “This is the best night I’ve had in months.”

Qrow paused. He took a deep breath to center himself, gathering his courage.

There really wasn’t going to be a better moment than this one.

Looking up, he met Clover’s eyes, the other man’s face sobering as he took in Qrow’s expression.

“Clover, you know that I was planning to stay in Atlas for at least a few months,” he began, wondering how every nerve in his body managed to feel like it had lit on fire. “But… I was hoping that we might also make what’s between us a little more permanent than that.”

He slowly pulled himself out from his chair and lowered himself to the ground on one knee.

“I know that you have to be here for your job, and I can’t promise I’ll always be here because I’ll still want to go back to Patch for visits with Tai and the kids, but I want to commit to you, officially, if that’s what you want. I don’t think there’s ever going to be a better time for us, and even if there is, I don’t want to wait any longer when we’ve already been apart long enough. I want to _be_ with you, completely, even if we can’t always physically be in the same place.”

Pulling in a deep breath, cutting off his rambling, he reached to the inner pocket of his jacket and brought out a box made of green velvet. The color was stunning, perfectly matched to the charm resting lightly over his chest and the widened eyes of the man looking down at him.

“So, let me know if I’m way out of line here, but if you do still feel the same way, then, Clover,” he swallowed once, hard, “would you marry me?” He flicked the box open, revealing the silver ring inside.

Clover inhaled sharply before dropping to his knees in front of him, hands coming up to frame his face.

“ _Qrow_ ,” he said, voice impossibly soft. His thumbs brushed back and forth along his cheekbones once before stopping suddenly as Clover’s face split into a grin. “Wait right here.”

And he left, brisk strides sweeping him out of the kitchen.

That was- _not_ the answer Qrow had been expecting, he thought dimly as he heard a drawer screech in the other room. He remembered the matching smiles on Tai and Ruby’s faces as he left Patch, Yang threatening him _Uncle Qrow_ , _you had better not come back without Clover or a ring or both_.

For the first time since then he really, truly let himself begin to panic at the idea that maybe he wouldn’t be able to go back.

His train of thought was cut short as Clover rushed back in and carefully knelt by him once more, one hand behind his back and a small smile on his face.

“Qrow, I wanted to surprise you with this on our call next week, but as per usual, you’re a whole step ahead of me. Although having you here to tell you in person is much better anyway,” he began, shaking his head as his smile turned fond. “You said you wanted to stay in Atlas for a few months. How does a few weeks sound?”

Qrow’s eyes widened in confusion as Clover continued, holding his gaze.

“I’m stepping down as General and handing the position over to Marrow, effective at the end of the month. The announcement is already set for next Wednesday morning. Since we were scheduled to talk the night before, I was actually hoping to ask you if I could come to stay on Patch with you as soon as it was done.”

Qrow’s mind was blank as he tried to process what Clover was telling him. “Are you sure a few weeks is enough? You’re going to have to transition the whole military to a new leader, that must take time. Won’t Marrow need you around?”

“We might not have made it public yet, but I finalized the decision almost six months ago. Everyone who’ll be part of the transition- the council, the upper branches of the military- is well aware that it’s coming and we’ve been preparing for it ever since. Besides, I was never supposed to be in the position for this long anyway, so it’s about time I passed it on.”

Clover laughed slightly, bowing his head, “To be honest, Marrow has been ready for this for a long time, and I have no doubts that Atlas and Mantle will flourish under his leadership. I wish I could say I had something to do with it, but he was a visionary even before he joined the Ace Ops and he’s grown into a capable leader over the years.”

“Prepping everything for the transition has been taking up all my time these past six months, which is why I’ve had to miss our calls so often- I’m sorry about that again, by the way- but I couldn’t bear for anything to push it off any further. You’re not the only one who thinks we’ve waited more than long enough, and I didn’t want to waste any more time than necessary without you.”

Qrow, still reeling, found his voice enough to protest to Clover’s earlier point, “Marrow is impressive, but he looks up to you. Everyone needs someone to help put them in the places where they can shine, and you’ve done that for him more than once. If he’s finally ready to step up and be a great general, you _should_ be proud of the role you’ve played in facilitating that.”

Clover practically beamed at him, and Qrow knew he was thinking of the times when this conversation had played in reverse, with Clover pushing him to realize the positive effects he’d had on the kids.

“Well, mentoring aside, the point of all this is to say that I want to be with you too. And since I’ll no longer be needed in Atlas, I can follow you to wherever you want to go.”

This time it was Clover’s turn to reveal a box, pulling it out from where he had hidden it behind his back. The outside of it was a deep red velvet, and Clover gently pried it open, the red stones worked into the dark silver of the ring inside reflecting the lights on the ceiling.

“Qrow Branwen,” he said, green eyes holding his gaze, “will _you_ marry _me_?”

Qrow surged forward in answer, one hand wrapping behind Clover’s neck to yank him closer into a kiss and the other careful not to tighten too hard around the box still in his grip. Clover laughed as they pulled apart.

“Can I take that as a yes?” he asked, mirth bouncing in his eyes.

“Of course,” Qrow said fiercely, “but since I asked you first and you _still_ haven’t given me a direct answer, I think you should put the damn ring on.”

This time Clover threw his head back as he laughed. “That’s fair, although I would think my proposal makes my answer pretty obvious,” he said, shifting the box into his right hand and holding out his left. “Yes, of course I’ll marry you, you silly bird. We should’ve done this years ago.”

Qrow chest felt light as he took Clover’s hand in his own. He took the ring into his other hand, sliding it along a graceful finger into position, his fingers brushing against the well-worn calluses that Kingfisher had made over the years. Tears pricked at the corner of his eyes as he looked at the ring displayed in its new place on Clover’s finger, admiring again the graceful metalwork across the top of it, woven to look like ivy with green gemstones embedded inside.

Clover interrupted his musings. “If you don’t stop looking at me like that I’m going to be forced to kiss you again, and then you’ll never get to put yours on,” he warned, voice thick with emotion.

Qrow laughed and held his out his own hand. He was practically dizzy as the weight of his new ring fit snugly into place, like it had always been there.

They sat there for a few more moments, gazing at the rings before Qrow broke the silence.

“So, we should celebrate,” he said, cocking his head and giving Clover a mischievous smile, “Bed now, dessert later?”

Clover laughed.

**Author's Note:**

> Marrow walks in just as Clover has swept Qrow up in his arms and is like “General, I heard that- what the hell!”
> 
> Also, in case anyone was wondering, I'm not a particularly big Logan/Rory fan- I just like the nickname :)


End file.
